


Enough

by Ebhenah



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Arcades, Casual Fling, Fluff, M/M, Relaxation, SHIRO FINALLY RELAXES, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, beer mentioned, between s07&s08, grief mentioned, super sugary
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2020-09-28 17:26:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20429699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ebhenah/pseuds/Ebhenah
Summary: Back on Earth, amid the preparations for Launch Day, Shiro finds a way to remember the simple pleasures of life and relax with a handsome new companion who has a knack for bringing a smile to his face.





	Enough

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the [Shiro Rarepair Flash Bang](https://twitter.com/shirorarepairfb) from twitter with [art](https://twitter.com/FenixSeraph/status/1173426420292423680) from the amazing Fenix, who can be found on [twitter](https://twitter.com/FenixSeraph) and [Tumblr](https://fenixseraph.tumblr.com/)
> 
> Thanks and big love to [Punk](https://twitter.com/PunkInGlitter) for being awesome and betaing this for me!
> 
> This was my first Flash Bang and I really loved the challenge and working with my artist!

The light was fading, the sun sitting low in the sky, but not yet dark enough for the automatic lights to kick in. They’d been back on Earth for a couple of months now, but Shiro still loved all the tiny reminders that he was on a planet and not a ship. Little things like the light changing over the course of the day did so much to make everything feel more ‘real’.

“Hey.” 

Shiro smiled, turning to face the newcomer. “Hey, yourself.”

“I should have figured I’d find you out here,” Ryan caught his hand, lacing their fingers together. “Sun’s starting to dip.”

“I didn’t think I was that predictable.”

“I’m observant,” the younger man answered easily, “they set the launch date today- which means you have been in meetings all afternoon getting ready to head back to space. So, it makes sense that you are going to soak up the sunset today. Most people are doing something similar.”

“Oh? Is that why you’re here?” He leaned closer and gave Ryan’s hand an affectionate squeeze.

“Mmm… they are going to be making your new rank official soon. Then you’ll be my commanding officer… and I know how seriously you take that.” There was no anger or blame in Ryan’s voice. They’d both been very clear about the temporary nature of their time together. “I decided to make the most of my early dismissal and catch a sunset with the most handsome man on base.”

“Most handsome man on base, huh?” He couldn’t help the flattered smile, or the light blush. He’d have argued that Ryan was more handsome, by far, but he’d take the compliment.

“Simultaneously a hot young thing and a silver fox.” Ryan dropped his hand, slipping an arm around his waist instead and tugging him closer with a little yank. “The deck is stacked in your favor, Shiro.”

He laughed, melting into the small intimacy and resting his head on Ryan’s shoulder. “Well, I guess, when you put it that way… who am I to argue? What are the others up to tonight?”

“James and Nadia are working late. Ina is working on some kind of pet project she won’t talk about.”

“Romelle,” he supplied, “that’s the pet project- she’s helping Romelle learn Earth customs. Coran mentioned it.”

“That’s adorable. Romelle is going to be so lost. What about the Paladins? Are you going to be summoned to some kind of team building night out?”

“I doubt it- Keith and Krolia are still spending most nights fixing up the place in the desert and the others are soaking up as much time with their families as they can.”

“You know the only reason they don’t invite you along is because they think you know that you have an open invitation, right?” Strong arms drew him closer and Ryan turned his head just enough to press a kiss to the line that Shiro knew was forming between his brows.

“I know,” he sighed. “I do. I want them to soak up all the normal they can while they have the chance.”

Ryan kissed him then, and if he’d thought it was going to be soft and comforting, he was very wrong. It was hard, hungry. The intensity stole his breath and made him clench his hand in Ryan’s shirt as he let his reaction swamp him and spill over. 

When they pulled back from the kiss, they were both breathing heavily but grinning. “No getting dragged down by what’s looming,” Ryan insisted, “that’s not how we work.”

“Right,” his smile softened and he shifted his focus, “seize the day.”

“That’s right, my friend. We seize the day. No missed opportunities. No regrets.” Ryan’s smile was bright and breathtaking, “so- after we watch the incredible sunset together, what do you want to do tonight?”

“I’m not sure. Things are so different than I remember… there used to be a bowling alley… It’s probably gone now.”

“It’s closed, but it’s still there,” Ryan replied, “the lanes are a mess, but if you bring a generator, the arcade games all still work.”

“They do? Even the VR stuff?”

“Sounds like you’ve got an idea for the night.” Shiro loved Ryan’s laugh, the contrast between it and his generally stoic demeanor. He loved the more private streak of youthful enthusiasm that he got to see when they spent time together off duty. 

If someone had told him when they first returned that MFE Pilot R. Kinkade would become one of the people he was closest to, he wouldn’t have believed it. But, here they were, and he was very glad for it. Early on, he had gotten into the habit of going to the memorial plaques. He read the names of the people he’d worked with, gone to class with, known since his first day at the Garrison. He’d learned the names and faces of people he’d never spoken to, never crossed paths with. It had been heavy and sobering, and it still didn’t make Adam’s death feel real to him. 

Every now and then, there would be someone else at the memorial when he arrived. Of course there was, the losses were staggering and there wasn’t a single survivor that didn’t mourn someone on that wall. Before long, he noticed that Kinkade seemed to have the same schedule as him. One day, they’d started talking- Shiro about Adam, Kinkade about his old dorm mate, Tucker. A few days later, Kinkade coaxed him into grabbing a coffee, gently chiding him about the difference between remembering someone and wallowing.

He’d needed that change of perspective. He’d needed to hear what the invasion and occupation had been like from someone who lived through it, who rose to its challenges and _fought_. It had been healing. They’d gotten very close, very fast… and without him even really noticing it happening, that friendship had… _shifted_ in the best way.

Things with Ryan were simple. Low stress. Uncomplicated. They understood each other. They understood the situation and the limitations and they just… worked within that. It was exactly what Shiro needed. Simple, happy, uncomplicated, and… _good_. A reminder of the small pleasures that made life worth all the pain and bullshit. A reprieve from the high stakes and tragic realities that had been hounding him for so long.

“How do you feel about racing games?” he asked, eyes twinkling.

“I feel like I’m gonna kick your ass,” Ryan countered, sparking Shiro’s competitive nature, which was probably exactly what he’d been trying to do.

“Wanna bet?”

After the sunset, they’d parted ways to get ready for their outing. Shiro had been pleasantly surprised when Kinkade had signed out a self-nav atv and nodded at a case of beer in explanation.

It had been disconcerting and a tad sad to climb rubble to get into the old bowling alley. It took time to pick a safe path through concrete and twisted metal, but they managed. There were some pretty solid hand and footholds, well cleared of debris that told him that others had made the same climb and the abandoned arcade still saw use from enterprising people who weren’t afraid of some minor trespassing. Ryan reached the top before him and found a safe spot to sit while Shiro cleared those last few feet.

“You didn’t have to wait for me,” Shiro laughed when he caught up.

“I know,” Ryan answered, catching Shiro around the waist and tugging him down to sit beside him. “I wanted to.”

“Well, that was sweet of you,” he said, enjoying the evening already.

“Mmm… wanted to make the most of our time together.” Wrapping an arm around Shiro’s back, he pulled him closer. The movement was unsteady on the precarious rubble and reflexively, Shiro grabbed a fistful of Ryan’s shirt for balance, triggering a soft laugh. “I got you,” Ryan promised, leaning in, “not letting you go anywhere just yet.”

Smiling besottedly, because he couldn’t help but do anything else, Shiro tipped in head to one side. The kiss was sweet. Tender. He melted into the soft caress of lips on lips, his hand still clinging to the fabric of Ryan’s shirt. It was one of those perfect moments that happened every now and then. The kind that reminded you of all the good stuff life had to offer. He felt like he was suspended in the space between one second and the next- the kiss somehow timeless.

When their lips parted, they were both grinning like lovestruck kids, noses crinkled and cheeks flushed. “Ready?” Ryan asked, nodding at the descent that still separated them from their goal. Shiro nodded and Ryan slung the bag holding the generator and the beer over his shoulder. “Alright then, after you, Captain Shirogane,” he teased.

Regaining his feet, Shiro chuckled, it felt odd to hear _this_ man call him _that_, even just playing around. Finding a path down the rough, unstable ruins was trickier than climbing up had been. He almost rolled his ankle a couple of times and Ryan just barely avoided colliding with him when he knocked some gravel the wrong way and crumbled what had been a pretty decent foothold.

They had to dig out the door a little- neither of them were particularly small guys- to be able to squeeze into the old bowling alley, but once they got the generator set up and downed a few beers, he kind of forgot about the destruction outside. The arcade was brightly lit and echoed with competing chimes and jingles from the various games. Years melted away and Shiro could almost believe he was still the eager cadet that was a regular at this place, blowing off steam and having fun with his flight class.

God, it had been so long since anything in his life had been simple. Easy. Happy. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed this much. He couldn’t remember the last time he could playfully trash talk without having to worry about his words carrying more weight than he intended. No promises hanging over them. No expectations beyond having fun together. 

He felt freer than he could ever remember feeling - and when they climbed back into the atv and Ryan hit the self-nav that would bring them safely back to the base before tumbling into Shiro’s embrace - his responsibilities were the last thing on his mind. When Ryan peeled him out of his clothes back in his quarters, his scars and the stories behind them were the furthest thing from his thoughts. When he drifted off to sleep, sated and warm and draped over one of the most handsome men he’d ever seen, he was just… Shiro. Not the star pilot, not the youngest Garrison Pilot to fly an Offworld Mission (a title that was about to be ‘officially’ transferred to Pidge on his suggestion), not the Champion, or the Black Paladin, or any of the other titles he’d had in his life. 

Just Shiro. 

And for the first time in his life, that was more than enough.

**Author's Note:**

> If you've read my fic [We Get A Love Story](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20120356/chapters/47664361) _this_ is the reason that Shiro was asking Romelle about the time she spent in Ryan's room. He and Kinkade were discrete, there was hardly any gossip at all... and he found the conversation about Ryan in 'We Get A Love Story' _very_ amusing!


End file.
